The Sorrell SNS-7 Hiperbipe is a two-seat,

negative stagger In aviation, stagger is the relative horizontal fore-aft positioning of stacked wings in a biplane, triplane, or multiplane. An aircraft is said to have ''positive stagger'', or simply ''stagger'', when the upper wing is positioned forward ...

conventional landing gear Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...

-equipped cabin

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

designed for amateur construction that was produced in kit form by Sorrell Aviation of

Tenino, Washington Tenino () is a city in Thurston County, Washington, United States. The population was 1,870 at the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1906, the city sits upon land first established as a food-source prairie for Native Americans living in the area. Th ...

and since 2015 by Thunderbird Aviation.Plane and Pilot: ''1978 Aircraft Directory'', page 153. Werner & Werner Corp, Santa Monica CA, 1977.

Design and development

The SNS-7 (Sorrell Negative Stagger, Model 7) was intended to give full unlimited aerobatic performance without sacrificing the comforts of a cabin-style aircraft. The Sorrell family originated from the state of Oregon, which was the last state to ban homebuilt aircraft. Hobie Sorrell petitioned congress for experimental aircraft regulations, and his son Tim designed the Hiperbipe in a series of family designed homebuilt aircraft. The design is of mixed construction. The

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

, tail, engine mount, landing gear mounts,

interplane struts In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of strut, which act in ...

and flight controls are all built from welded

4130 steel 41xx steel is a family of SAE steel grades, as specified by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). Alloying elements include chromium and molybdenum, and as a result these materials are often informally referred to as chromoly steel (common ...

. The wings are made from wood, with wooden stressed skin. The landing gear is sprung steel tube. The engine cowling and

wheel pants An aircraft fairing is a structure whose primary function is to produce a smooth outline and reduce drag.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, Third Edition'', page 206. Aviation Supplies & Academics Inc, Newcastle Washington, 1997. ...

are

fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

. The whole airframe is covered in doped

aircraft fabric Aircraft fabric covering is a term used for both the material used and the process of covering aircraft open structures. It is also used for reinforcing closed plywood structures. The de Havilland Mosquito is an example of this technique, as are ...

, including the plywood-covered wings. The airfoil is a custom symmetrical design. The SNS-7 is capable of advanced

aerobatics Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glid ...

, including vertical eight point rolls and inside and outside vertical eights. The tooling and manufacturing rights were acquired by Thunderbird Aviation in 2015, who began making parts and basic kits.

Operational history

In April 2010 there were 22 Hiperbipes registered in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, two in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, and one in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Specifications (SNS-7)

References

External links

Photo of the sole UK Hiperbipe on Airliners.net
{{Sorrell Aviation Biplanes with negative stagger Homebuilt aircraft Hiperbipe Single-engined tractor aircraft Aerobatic aircraft

Design and development

Operational history

Specifications (SNS-7)

See also

References

External links